Water

Groundwater and land resources in Tellus Border coastal zones

Identifying groundwater pathways in the coastal zone is important for the management of fresh water resources in coastal aquifers, and protection against land-based sources of organic and inorganic contaminant plumes which can be transported via preferential groundwater pathways to the sea. This research involved analysis of Tellus and Tellus Border airborne geophysical data (magnetics and electromagnetics) in the coastal zones of Dundalk Bay and Carlingford Lough to detect bedrock geological trends, fracture zones and igneous dykes that have the potential to control groundwater flow pathways.A terrestrial and marine Electrical Resistivity Tomography field survey was also carried out to validate anomalies observed in the Tellus airborne data, possibly relating to offshore freshwater discharge or inland incursion of seawater to coastal aquifers. Many of the observations made warrant further detailed investigation including examining coastal zones across different superficial and bedrock geology types, structural geology settings and aquifer types; assessing the conductivity signature of bedrock lithologies from the electromagnetic data; and examining saline influence in to groundwater bodies.

Ecohydrological Characterisation of wetlands in the border region

There is a lack of baseline data for the full range of Irish wetlands and there remains limited understanding of how anthropogenic and climactic induced hydrological pressures impact on these local wetland systems. Through desk studies, field investigations and field monitoring, detailed ecohydrological conceptual models were developed for 5 representative border region wetlands sites, including Groundwater Dependent Terrestrial Ecosystems (GWDTEs) which are currently under particular focus of EU legislation. Tellus and Tellus Border geochemical data was used to examine the occurrence of wetland habitats across a range of geochemical and geological settings to understand where and why different wetland habitats occur within the border counties. This 2-year postdoctoral research informed the assessment of wetland hydrological mechanisms, pressures and ecosystem processes required by the Water Framework and Habitats Directives.